Humidifier



Jan. 23, 1945., H WEYEVNBERG 2,358,057

HUMIDIFIER Filed June 7, 1941 '22 za //x INYEN TOR f/yry Neyqbrg GM M Dua,

Patented Jan. 23, 1945 `HUMIDIFIER Henry. Weyenberg; Holland; J'Micl.,` assignor to Holland FurnaceuCompany, Holland; Mich., a

corporation 'Application June 7, 1941, Serial'No.-397;074

e l Claim.

My present invention relates to improvements "in'air heating furnaces such as are employed'in dwellings and like buildings, the improvements being particularly concerned with the Construction and installation of the humidifiers' by which the air heated within the furnace is charged with moisture in controlled amount as it leaves the furnace for its excursion through the heat conductor pipes; and the objects of improvement are, first, to provide a humidier for air heating furnaces that will be cheap to produce and install; second, to provide a humidier for air heating furnaces that will be more eficient than humidifiers heretofore employed; third, to provide a humidier for air heating furnaces that will charge the air that has been heated in the furnace adjacent the air conductor pipe opening; fourth, to provide a humidier for air heating furnaces that can be readily removed for cleaning; fifth, to provide a humidier for air heating urnaces that can readily be installed subsequent to the installation of the furnace.

I attain these named objects and such other objects as appear upon perusal of the followin description when taken in connection with the accompanying drawing disclosing the humidier structure and its installation in an air heating furnace, and in which Figure 1 is a vertical sectional View of an air heating furnace having one of my improved hum'idifiers installed therein.

#Figure 2 is an enlarged plan view of my hu: midifier unit removed from the furnace.

Figure 3 is an enlarged fragmentary crosssectional view of my humidier unit, the View showing a difierent way of delivering and controlling the water to the humidier than that shown in Figure 1 as taken on line 3-3 of Figura 2 including the water drip valve, nozzle with its piping and a fragmentary portion of the top of the furnace.

Referrin to the drawing, similar numerals refer to similar parts of the invention throughout the several views, and referring thereto.

Numeral l designates the outer casing of the furnace having supported therein in spaced apart relation thereto, heat defiector 2 extending vertically and surrounding the periphery of heat radiator 3 having therein heat distribution chamber 4 connected with the combustion chamber 5 by vertically elongated flue 6; the combustion chamber has below the heat radiator, combustion flame inlet pipe 'I through which the burning fuel is projected to the combustion chamber during operation of the furnace where substantially com- '126 l13) plete com bu'stion takes place with the heatgenv erated therebypassing through the elongated flue 6 to the heat distribution' chamber 4 .of the radiator and from where the products of combustion passes through 'pipe 8 to thechimney or stack. The combustion chamber 5 has top deck plate 9 which may be fiat as shown in Figure 1 of the drawing, crowned upward or concave, the plate 9 whether fiat, crowned 'or concave has mounted thereon, the humidier unit o, comprising in its present form, annular vertical wall ll having screw threaded hole |2 into which is screwed drain over-flow pipe !3, annular vertical wall M forming therebetween an annular wall ll, annular trough |5 having at its side nearest the pipe !3, transversely extending ribs I 6 forming pocket I l and dams for maintaining water in the trough |5 at its lower side adjacent said pocket l' from which extends the pipe !3, for drainng the pocket l'l. At the axis of the humidier unit n is vertically extending hole I8 which causes a circulaton of heated air between the deck plate 9 and the unit [0, the hole has annular wall !9 extending upward a greater height than the ,wall ll which is higher than the annular wall l4, thereby forming trough 15'. supporting the humidier unit on the deck plate 9 are legs 20, 2l and 22, of which the leg 20 has a. greater length than legs 22 and still greater than leg 2| located diametrically opposite of the unit from leg 20, thereby causing the humidier unit to have incline relation with the said deck plate 9, the incline causing water to flow to the lower side of the trough l5', over the wall 14 into trough |5 and pocket ll from where excess water fiows ofi through pipe I 3 to the exterior of the furnace. Water for raising the moisture content of the air heated in the furnace is conducted as shown in Figure 1, through pipes 24 and 25 having manually controlled valve 26 operated by rod 21 turnable by handle 28. Directly above hole IS of the humidier unit and extending upward from the furnace top plate and in alignment with the hole |8 of the humidier unit is heated air conductor pipe connectin thimble 29. As shown in Figure 3, the water flow to the humidier unit is downward through supply pipe 30 having eXterior of the furnace casing, control valve 3 I, through horizontally disposed pipe 32 and nozzle 33 from which it drops into trough l5' and distributed as shown in Figure 1.

I n the operation of my humidier in connection with the air heating furnace as shown and described, the fire having been started, the troughs !5 and 15' of the humidier are charged with water by opening the valves 26 by the rod 21 and handle 28, or valve 3 l, opening these valves permits water to flow to the troughs of the humidifier which because of the heated condition of the humdifier causes the water to vaporize almost instantly at the higher portion of the troughs and charge the heated air passing through the furnace with moisture before it leaves the furnace on its heating excursion and which is tested for percentage of moisture and regulated by either opening or closing the valves 28 or 3l as required to produce the desired humidity which should be for best health condition between 64 and 66 per cent for rooms heated. My humidifier can be more accurately controlled, because the water at its thin fringe-like edge at the higher portion of the troughs is evaporated more quickly than at the lower portion of the troughs where the water accumulates in a body of considerable thickness which takes longer to start evaporation and the air is charged after it has been heated and just before it leaves the furnace, than where the air is charged in its cool state below the combustion chamber as heretofore. The thin fringe of water at the higher 'portion of the troughs evaporates more quickly than the body of water at the lower portion of the troughs, thereby causing a varable of evaporation with the thin fringe of the water evaporating rapidly and the thicker body evaporating more slowly. This is important for high efilciency. Where the water is of uniform thickness as would occur where the humidifier was set level, humidity would not be uniform through periods of time.

Having described my invention, I claim:

A humidifier for an air heating urnace comprising an annular body having an upstanding outer rim, an upstanding inner rim defining an axially disposed, vertically extendng passage through said body, an intermediate upstanding annular wall of less height than said rims and forming two concentric troughs, means forming a pocket at one side of the outer trough, legs ot unequal length supporting the body, the Shorte! of which is adjacent said pocket, a drain for said pocket, and means to supply water to the inner trough.

HENRY WEYENBERG. 

